Rigid airship



July 16, 1929.

' .E. HILLIGARDT EF AL RIGID AIRSHI'P Filed Dec. 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet. 2

Patented July 16, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ERICH HILLIGARDT, OF FRIEDRIOHSHAFEN-ON-TI-IE-BODENSEE, GERMANY, AND BENJAMIN SCHNITZER, OF AKRON, OHIO, ASSIGNORS TO GOODYEARJEPPELIN CORPORATION, OF AKRON, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

RIGID AIRSHIP.

Application filed December 16, 1927. Serial No. 240,503.

Our invention relates to rigid airships and it has particular relation to an improved construction and arrangement of various elements of the superstructure of such airships.

One object of the invention is to provide a rigid airship which is so constructed as to insure an improved and convenient arrangement of accommodations for passengers and crews by the utilization of certain portions of the air ship hull construction, and especially of the main ring constructions.

Another object of the invention is to provide an airship in which the structural elements are so arranged that the trim of the airship is not materially affected by the shifting loads caused by movement of the passengers and crews.

According to the practice previously followed for accommodating passengers and crews of airships, all rooms were arranged longitudinally of the airship, preferably along the lower keel portion thereof. However, with the increase in sizes of airships of this type, such arrangement of accommodations, if employed, would require a greater portion of the airship length than would be practical. An arrangement has been proposed wherein two divisions of accommodations are provided, one arranged on each side of the airship hull. These accommodations, such as dining rooms, which are for general use, should be disposed symmetrically to the airships axis in order to avoid shifting of the load from one side to the other. While a. separate dining room with kitchen could be provided along each side of the airship, such arrangement would require two sets of kitchen utensils and personnel.

According to this invention the rooms for social purposes are arranged between laterally spaced longitudinally disposed gangway-s. Thus the trim of the airship is least affected when, for example, the passengers enter these social rooms after leaving their quarters in the gangways, and vice versa. By arranging the social rooms between the gangways, the passengers are required to move only relatively short distances, thereby reducing to a minimum the affect upon the lateral trim of the airship. At the. same time the conventional structural members of the airship hull can be utilized for incorporation therein of the additional accommodations. Therefore, the weight of the airship is maintained at a minimum. The advantage of arranging rooms within a main ring is that the loads are supported directly by the ring instead of being transmitted to it by the gangways. Such arrangement facilitates communication between the opposite sides of the airship and the passenger quarters on both sides are conveniently located with respect to the central dining room. Since the side gangways are relatively strong, the transversely disposed rooms can be constructed between the main rings and supported by the gangways or they may form a part of the lower portion of the transversely disposed frames or main rings. It is to be understood that the constructions described are not restricted to the specific accommodations referred to, but may be employed for various other purposes.

For a better understanding of the inven tion, reference may now be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, of which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary diagrammatical view of an airship, partially in elevation and partially in cross-section, illustrating an arrangement of elements of an airship superstructure embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a crosssectional View of a wire braced main ring, the view being taken substantially along the line IIII of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an inherently stifl transverse frame or main ring, the view being taken substantially along the line IIIIII of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view, on a larger scale, illustrating in detail, the construction of one of the main rings; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view, on a larger scale, taken substantially along the line IV-IV of Fig. 2.

The invention, which is diagran'imatically illustrated by the drawings, embodies an elongate hull 10 composed of transversely disposed main rings 11 and 12, auxiliary rings 13 and longitudinally disposed girders 14. Also, longitudinally disposed gangway structures 15 and 16 are symmetrically arranged at opposite sides of the hull below the longitudinal axis of the airship.

The main ring 11 is an inherently rigid substantially annular framework and does not require wire bracing. As best shown by Figs. 4 and 5, the lower portion of this ring is so constructed as to provide upper and lower decks 17 and 18, which serve as dining room and kitchen spaces 19 and 20, and communicate with the gangways 15 and 16 by means of steps or stairways 22 and 23. It will be observed that the framework of the main ring does not materially interfere with the normal position and size of gas cells 24: of convential type.

The main ring 12, having wire bracing :26 therein, is provided at its lower portion with a relatively large frame construction 27 that extends across the lower portion of the airship between the gangways and provides dining room and kitchen spaces 17 and 18 of substantially the same construction as that cescribed in conjunction with the main ring 11. Also, frame work constructions 28, disposed between the gangways along the lower portion of the airship, are provided with similar accommodations, but are disposed between auxiliary rings 13 instead of being constructed as a part of the main rings. At whatever location the constructions 27 and 28 are arranged, they are always in direct communication with the gangways and are also conveniently accessible to all quarters of the airship.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that airships having passenger quarters and dining rooms arranged in the manner proposed will tend to maintain their properly balanced relation during maneuvering operations and will offer minimum inconvenience with respect to communication between the dill'erent parts of the hull.

Although only the preferred forms of the invention have been illustrated and described in detail, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited but that various minor modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention or from the scope of the appended claim.

What we claim is:

A rigid airship hull comprising transversely disposed trusses of substantially annular form, gangways located in the lower portion of the airship upon opposite sides of the longitudinal center line thereof, and a plurality of superimposed compartments providing rooms for passengers and crew, each of said compartments having stairway communication with both gangways and with each other, said compartments being substantially rectangular in cross-sectional contour and being built into the lower portion of the airship between the gangways.

In witness whereof, we have hereunto signed our names in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ERICH HILLIGARDT. BENJAMIN SCHNITZER. 

